Kathy

I’ve recently gotten serious about researching my family and our family history. However, I’m a complete novice going about it.

I know our family back to four generations, though I’m not sure on birth/death/marriage dates for some of the older generations. I’ve manage to find a lot on my father’s maternal side but I’ve drawn blanks elsewhere. Every site I seem to find information on seems to want to charge me...

Which (if any) websites are best and, crucially, free to use for research?

I'm English born, so I’m guessing British websites would probably be best but, if it’s free to use and view, any will do.

My friend has decided to change his name (for a variety of reasons) from ‘Steven’ to a more ‘international’ version of the name. He’s very keen on Scandinavian variations of ‘Steven’ (his ancestry is Scandinavian) but which is best? He has already ruled out spelling it with a ‘ph’ like ‘Stephen’ or ‘Stephan’.

I've recently bought a chimenea and last week we burned our old, broken-up fence for fuel. However, my friend suggested I use coal or charcoal because it gives out more heat for longer. Which is best: coal or wood? Are there any specific advantages to either?